Improvement in generating gas from hydrocarbons



ittici@ Stairs JAMES R. SMEDBERG, OF SAN FRANCISCO, CALIFORNIA.

Letters Patent No. 109,460, dated November 22, 1870.

IMPROVEMENT IN GENERATING GAS FROM HYDROCARBONS.

The Schedule referred. to in these Letters Patent and making part of thesame.

To all whom tt may concern Be it known that I, JAMES It. Sarannnnc, otthe city and county of San Francisco, State of California,

provements without further invention or experiment.

My invention relates to certain improvements in the method and theapparatus employed for producing illuminating gas from hydrocarbon oils,and more especially i'om criulepetroleum.

The invention consists in the use ol" a peculiar selfregulating icedapparatus, by which the iiow ofthe oil is rendered at all times uniform,it being taken from the surface: and also ina water-jaeketedseal,eniployed to prevent the return ot gas through the supply-pipe, and'also to prevent the vaporizatiou ot' oil in the pipe from the heat.

Referring to the accompanying drawing fora more complete explanation otmy invention,

A is a tank containing petroleum, -and made ot' a suiicient size to holdthe quantity desired. The bottom ofthis tankis provided with astuliingbox, B, through which a hollow spindle, (l, slides. This spindleis finished so as lo move smoothly thronghthe stuiing-box, and may havea suitable disclnu'ge-imzzle at the bottom.

At the top of the spindle C is a l'loat, l), which rests upon theysurface of the oil in the tank.

Just beneath the liuc ottlotation, a small opening, a, is made, throughthe side. ot the spindle C; and this opening will always be kept at thesame distance beneath the surface ol' the oil, by the risc. and l'allot' the float.

A screw-plug, E, is litted into the side ot' the spindle which projectsabove the tioat a short distance, and by turning this plug down, it willpartially stop the feed-opening a., and thus regulate the quantityadmitted to the pipo.

A graduated stem, l", passes through the cross-bar G, and serves both toindicate the quaniityiot' oil used and to guide the. spindle as theiioai moves up and down.

Ilythe use ol` the lloat and the spindle, with the opening a, or byother obvious equivalent devices, I am also enabled lo i'eed Jthe oil atall times from the surface, and the water and other heavy'iinpuritieswill thus be allowed to vsettle to the bottom,fro|u which they can bedrawn ott' at convenient times.

The lower end ofthe spindle enters a larger' shieldpipe, H, within whichit moves up and down without touching, this outer tubeserving to preventthe oil heilig blown about by the wind, or otherwise aiected.

A sort of funnel, I, receives the oil from the pipeC and conveys it tothe pipe J, which in turn delivers it to a chamber, K.

This chamber has a diaphragm or partition, L, extending nearly to thebottom'of it, so that the oil must pass beneath the partition and riseto the level of the pipe M. This arrangement serves as a seal, toprevent any gas from returning from the retort through the pipes.

In order to prevent any possibility' ot the oil being vapor-ized in orbeyond the vessel K, it is surrounded by an outer vessel, N, which isfilled with water, and which is provided with a pipe, N', so that coolwat-er can be supplied it' the contents become heated.

The pipe M conveys the oil t o the retort O, into which it is passed.The interior ot the retort is formed, in the present case, like theordinary coal-gas rctorts,but maybe made ot' any form which will givesatisfactory results.

fithin the retort a pipe, I, extends ii'onnone end to near the otherend.

'lhe front end is so arranged that it is closed tightly by the samecover, b, which stops the retort.

No changel will be Vuecessaryiu adapting the ordinary retorts to myarrangement,except additional eircular ribs upon the interior face ofthe cover, to tit the cud of' this pipe.

yThe rear end oi' the pipe is left open.

It is the stand-pipe. through which the gas flows after it is formed.

'lhe retort is kept at a very high temperature, and the oil is vaporizedas it enters the pipe P, so thatby the time the vapor escapes from therear end of the pipe into the body ol' the retort, it has acquired sucha heat as to abstract very little directlyfroni the retort, and thisrenders it possible to retain the retortat a high heat without muchdiiiicult-y.

The gas manuihctured in this manner is permanent, and does not condenseor lose its brilliancy when exposed to great` cold, its permenence beingthe result of prolonged contact with the interior surface of' the retortduring its passage to the stand-pipe.

Whenever it is necessary to stop the operation, the 'float 1) in thetank A may be elevated from the surface of the oil b va cord, e, andlever, (1,01' other suitable device.

A cock may also be arranged in the pipe M, near the retort.

By removing the cover of the retort, the interior ot' it and of the pipeI' will be exposed, and the deposit of coke which will be found inthepipe can be removed by a serrated punch, followed by a rake.

Alight coating of lamp-black orl line carbon will be deposited in theretort, and this can also be removed.

As destructive distillation commences near the rear end of the pipe 1*,the deposit ot' coke will be greater in that part of the pipe. Itherefore make it tapering, the largest opening being in the rear. Thisalso gives greater facility for'cleaning.

The retort will have to be opened so rarely, and for such short times,that little-heat will be lost tiom this cause, and the high temperaturenecessary can he easily maintained.

rllhe apparatus is peculiarly adapted for use in through7 ordouble-ended retorts.

It is also possible, by the feeding arrangement, to- .supply a constantquantity of liquid until the containing-vessel or tank is entirelyempty; and this isimportant. l

Having thus described my invention,

What I claim, .and desire to secure hy'Letters Patent, is

The combination of the oat 1') and hollow spindle C, arranged totraverse vertically in the tank A so as to feed constantly from the.vsurface of the tank, substantially as described.

2. The combination of the adjustable plug E and hollow traversingspindle C, constructed and arranged to operate as described for thepurposev set forth.

Y 3. The vessel K, with its diaphragm L, together with the outer vesselNfwhen arranged cooperate substantially as herein described.

y In witness that the above-described invention is claimed byme, I havehereunto set myhand and seal.

JAMES R. SMEDBERG. {n.s]

Witnesses: v

Guo. H. STRONG, lERALD FITZGERALU.

